Brian Woods

Brian went to Cambridge and studied Psychology for three years, from whence (to the surprise of everyone) he graduated with a First.

He tries to give the impression that he doesn't like people to know this, but its inclusion here is obvious evidence that that is a pile of tosh.

His first job was as an account manager for a top London Advertising Agency, managing brands such as Honeywell, Mazda and Holsten Pils. However that job lasted less than a year before he was unceremoniously sacked, enabling him to realise the truth that he, in fact, hated advertising with a passion.

Through sheer perseverance (i.e. writing hundreds of letters) he managed to get a six week job in a corporate video production company, where he stayed for the next five years. He quietly sneaked through various jobs including researcher, set designer, floor manager, and writer to eventually emerge as a producer (at least that's what it said on the business card).

Clients such as British Telecom, BP, ICI and Power Gen had the dubious honour of benefitting from his directing and writing skills.

He finally reached the dizzy heights of an 8 x 30 minute infotainment show for Ulster Television called Green Pages, during which he met his wife, and now co-director, Deborah.

He then realised it was time to leave the corporate lagoon and attempt to sink or swim in the ocean that it broadcast. (A decision helped by the decision by Chrysalis Television not to extend his contract.)

Diverse Productions recognised his undoubted talents, and hired him for a series of programmes for the BBC called Winning. That series won a Royal Television Award for Best Adult Education programme in 1993.

Soon afterwards (when Diverse did not offer him any more work) he co-founded a new independent production company that evolved into True Vision in the fullness of time.

True Vision has done a bunch of stuff that you probably already know about if you are sufficiently interested in the company as to have delved this far into its website.

He tries (but usually fails) to do ashtanga yoga self-practice every morning, paints acrylic abstracts, and has recently discovered a modest talent for clay modelling.

And if you're STILL hungry for more, then you can hear him wittering on to Televisual about social documentary, and passing on the best piece of advice he has ever been given, (all while wearing an implausibly loud Desigual shirt!) in the video clip below...

And if that's not enough, here he is droning on about how documentary can change the world at a conference in 2007, along with Angus McQueen, Deborah Burton, and Nick & Mark Francis

Finally, if your masochism knows no bounds, here he is being the token man on a panel discussing why so few women are winning awards for factual programmes